Zero
by Kali Gargoyle
Summary: Donatello's stumbled across a cool new computer the likes of which he's never seen before. Now, he just has to figure out how to work it. Or should I say... her? Rating may go up later.
1. Discovery

Zero

By Kali Gargoyle

***

"It's probably just another rat. Do we really have to come all the way out here just to fix some stupid sensor? I mean, we've got like ten billion of 'em."

Donatello rolled his eyes. "I'm not making you come, Raph. You can go back to the lair if you really think this is a waste of time."

Raphael twirled his sai between his fingers. "Nah, there's nothin' to do back there."

Don shone the flashlight down the tunnel, trying to notice any signs of trespassers. One of the outer perimeter alarms had been tripped a few minutes ago. None of the other alarms had gotten tripped since, so that meant one of two things: That it was a false alarm, or that whoever it was sighted the hidden alarm system and had managed to avoid or disarm it. Also, several of the scanners in the tunnels went haywire at the same time, leading Don to conclude that there was definitely some type of electrical disturbance. He hoped it was something natural.

Raphael was there simply out of boredom. He'd invited himself along, then proceeded to complain the entire time, in true Raphael style. Don almost hoped it was an intruder, so he wouldn't have to listen to his brother complain anymore.

Don paused and looked over his shoulder. "Then can you at least be quiet? The tripped sensor is just around this corner, a block down."

Raphael gave him a silent glare and the two moved on. Don turned the light off and they went the rest of the way in the dark. Of course, with their ninja training and the fact that they'd lived in these tunnels nearly all their lives, the darkness wasn't an obstacle.

Donatello stepped around the corner and stopped in his tracks, causing Raphael to walk into his shell. "Hey, what's the big-" Raphael looked over Don's shoulder. "Whoa. That sure ain't a rat."

Donatello stepped forward slowly. The figure propped up against the wall didn't even budge. It looked like it was human, so pale it stood out easily against the dark background. A few more steps and Don began to worry when he realized that there was no movement at all, not even breathing.

"Great, probably some victim someone dumped down here. Hey, if we hurry I bet we can find 'em."

Don ignored Raphael and knelt down to check on the person. No clothes, more evidence of foul play. He took hold of the thin wrist to see if he could find a pulse. "Hmm... What the..."

Raph looked back, his fingers clenched around the handle of his sai, his body tensed and hopeful for a battle. "So is she dead or not?"

"I'm not sure." Don ran his fingers up the human's arm. The skin was icy cold to the touch, but not quite the texture he was expecting, although it was very familiar. "It feels almost like... metal."

***

"So what is it?" Leonardo stood with his arms crossed, looking down at Donatello's latest acquisition.

"It's an android. I think. A robot designed to look like a human," Don explained. Leo could hear the excitement in his brother's voice as he searched through boxes of equipment. Don always got excited whenever he came across a new bit of technology, and this was definitely more than he usually picked up at the local junk lot.

Michaelangelo poked the android in the shoulder. "How do you turn her on?"

Leo arched an eyebrow at Mike. "How can you tell it's a girl?"

Mike tilted the android's chin upwards. "Just look at this face. Big eyes, tiny nose, and the thin frame _screams_ feminine."

Donnie shook his head. "It's a robot Mike. It doesn't have a gender."

"Data has a gender," Mike shot back.

Leo smirked. "He's got you there, Donnie. Anyway, what do you plan on doing with her?"

Don set some test equipment on his desk. "First I gotta figure out how to turn it on."

"What, you gonna frisk her for an on button?" Raph asked from his place in the corner. He'd been observing quietly, but couldn't resist making the comment.

"Ha, ha." But Don did go over and check around the android's head and neck area, pushing aside a few locks of silvery-white synthetic hair. A minute later he took on a frustrated expression. "Maybe it's remote activated. Or possibly a voice command..."

Raphael yawned. "Happy hacking, Brainiac. Just make sure she doesn't go berserk and wreck the lair or something."

***

"Donnie? Donatello!"

Don woke up with a jerk. "Huh? Wha'? Where?"

Leo pulled his hand away from Don's shoulder. "Don't tell me you were up _all_ night working on that thing?"

Don yawned and stretched his arms over his head. "Guess I was. You know I have a tendency to lose track of time. Especially when I'm working on something. Is it time for practice?"

"It's almost time for lunch," Leo told him, his way of saying that Don'd already missed morning training. He leaned against Don's desk and looked over at the android still sitting in the corner. "Made any progress?"

"None." Don sighed. "I can't find any hookups, nor can I even find out how to turn it on." He walked around his desk and stood in front of the android. "This is more advanced than anything I've had the chance to work with before. But I've rewired our lair, I've built who knows how many computers from scratch, I _can_ do this!"

"Don, she's not a computer."

"_It is_ a computer, Leo. Just in human form." Don rubbed his chin in thought, speaking more to himself than Leo. "I'm starting to think this is just the hardware, with no software installed. If that's the case, it's possible that I can design an operating system for it. I could always take it apart, but I wouldn't even know where to start, the skin layer is seamless."

Leo was both amused and concerned about his brother's obsession with this android. "What would you program her to do? Besides, she didn't just appear down there, she probably belongs to someone."

"Yeah, Leo, you're right." Raphael stood blocking the door Leo was trying to leave through. "We'll get busy right away putting "Lost Android" posters up all over the neighborhood."

Leo grumbled and shoved his way out the door. Raph grinned. "Donnie, reprogrammed her yet?"

Don grabbed his magnifying goggles off his workbench. "Will you guys stop referring to it as "she" and "her", it's distracting."

"Ooh, _so_ sorry." Raph snickered. "I'll take that as a no. Just admit it, you have zero clue what you're doing."

Don was about to snap a comeback at Raphael, but his attention was drawn to the android in the corner. "What a sec... I thought..." He leaned in closer.

This piqued Raphael's curiosity and he walked over to look over Donnie's shoulder. "What, did she blink or somethin'?"

Of course, that second was the exact moment Mike decided to pop his head in as well. "Hey guys, what's up?"

Don shushed him. "I though I heard something." He watched the android for a few seconds but nothing happened. "Hmmm... Raph, repeat what you said before."

"What, did she blink or somethin'?"

"No, before that. 'Just admit it, you have zero clue..." _Whrrrrr._ "There it is again, did you hear it?"

This time, the android's head lifted up and it stared forward with dark, lifeless eyes. Don was grinning like crazy. "Can you understand me?"

Nothing.

Don frowned. "Maybe... Just. Admit. It. You. Have. Zero." _Whrrrrrr._

"Ha!" Don jumped up, nearly knocking Raphael over. "That's it! Zero!"

Raph scratched his head. "So her name's Zero?"

Don hissed through his teeth. "What did I tell you about that? It's more likely the activation codeword." He started pushing Raph out of the room. "Now, leave me alone so I can get to work."

Raph dug his heels into the ground. "Hey, without me you never would have figured that name thing out."

Don gave him and Mike one final shove out the door. "Thank you." Then he shut the door on them. He turned back to his project, rubbing his hands together. He pulled his seat next to the android. "Can you tell me where you came from?"

Again, nothing.

"Zero." Finally, a response, the android turned its head towards him. "Where are you from?"

"Unable to process." The android's voice was monotone but smooth, unlike a few other computer voice programs he'd worked with, which took words from a set vocabulary that rarely melded to sound anything close to natural.

Don furrowed his brow. This was going to take some getting used to. Figuring out the nuances of the voice commands could be difficult. "Who created you?"

There was that _whrrrr _sound again. "This unit was designed, built, and programmed by Doctor Francis Sung."

Don smiled to himself. "Now we're getting somewhere. Zero, what is your purpose?"

The humming sound was followed by a series of clicks. "Unable to access file."

"What's the problem?"

"Connections between the base program and supplementary files are unable to be made."

Don drummed his fingers. "How would we reconnect those files?"

"Unable to access file."

"Of course." Don sighed. "Zero, is there any way to access your supplementary files directly, without using the base program?"

"Unable to access file."

Don massaged his temples. "Zero, is there any way to physically connect yourself to a secondary computer?"

"Affirmative."

"Finally. How would I make the connection?"

'Zero' brought her hand up to her own temple. There was a click and a small panel was reveled beneath the hairline. Don leaned forward and recognized connection ports. He smiled to himself and started to search for the proper connection cables. _Now_ things were going to get interesting.


	2. Awakening

Zero: Chapter Two

***

It was late afternoon before anyone dared look in on Donatello. And just his luck, it was Michaelangelo whose curiosity got the better of him.

Don was so immersed in his work that he didn't even notice when the door was opened. He just continued to scan over the information written across his computer monitor. Michaelangelo snuck up to the desk, smiling as Don just sat unblinking in his chair, the only movement an occasional click of the mouse.

Mike glanced over at Zero, still sitting in the corner. She had some wires sticking out of her head, which ran over and plugged into Donatello's computer, but other than that, looked exactly the same as before. He wondered if Don had made any progress. 

Mikey turned his attention back to Don, who was still involved in his work. A sly grinned crossed Mike's face just before he jumped up and slammed his palms down on the desk. "Heya Don!"

Donatello jerked in surprise, falling out of his chair. "Wha-? Mikey!" Don jumped to his feet and grabbed for his brother over the desk, but Mike simply stepped back out of his reach.

"So, how's it goin'?"

Don let out a frustrated sigh and pulled his chair back to his desk. "Fine, until a few seconds ago."

Mike laughed out loud. "Sorry, couldn't resist. But really, how's the hacking going? Got her running yet?"

"I've got good news and bad news about that. Good news is that it has a full system. Bad news is that it's malfunctioning, and I have no idea how to fix it."

"Is she gonna be okay?" Mike went over and looked into Zero's dark, blank eyes. He tilted his head, trying to catch any spark of life.

"I think so. I did manage to get its self-repair program up and running." Don looked at Zero in awe. "I can't believe the technology involved in this. Optical and tactile sensors, speech recognition and synthesis. The synthetic skin and hair contain billions of photovoltaic cells for power. It's a whole network of nanotechnology, designed to mimic human biology."

Mike held his hands up. "Okay, okay, I get it. She's very cool. But when's she gonna wake up?"

"The repair work is going to take a few more hours, at least. I'd estimate that it'll be up and running by this evening." Don shrugged as he studied the prone android. "After that, I'm not sure."

"Can we keep her?"

"_It_, Mike, not _her_. And I don't think we can. _Someone_ built it, and I don't know how it got into the sewers, but I think it was headed somewhere."

Mike pouted. "I wanted to keep her."

Don shook his head. "Yeah, just like you wanted to keep that baby alligator when we were six. As soon as I find this Francis Sung guy, it's going back."

"But what if she was running _from_ him?"

Don pinched between his eyes, trying to stop the approaching headache. "I'll ask Zero, Mike, okay? Trust me, I know what I'm doing."

Mike put his hands on his hips. "Fine. Have it your way, Mr. Techie Turtle. I'll leave you to play with your new toy, but don't come crying to me when things go wrong."

As soon as Mike left, Don slumped back into his chair to study the data on his monitor.

A second later, Mike popped his head back into the lab. "Oh yeah, almost forgot, the TV's busted again."

Mike shut the door quickly before a roll of purple electrical tape flew across the room and hit him right in the face. Don watched the tape roll back towards him. He mumbled something about 'accident prone brothers' and continued with his work.

***

Raphael drummed his fingers on the kitchen table. He hated just sitting around, waiting for things to happen. And he especially hated waiting on another person.

"Just deal the cards already!"

Mike grinned and quickly finished shuffling. He dealt out the cards more slowly than needed. "Why are you yelling at _me_? _You_ were the one who kicked the TV."

Raph grumbled and picked up his cards. "If Casey wasn't working..." He placed a six of hearts on top of Mike's eight of spades just as Splinter and Leonardo returned from their supply run.

Leo placed his bags on the counter. "What, the TV broken again?"

"Raph did it," Mike said as he tossed down a king of diamonds. Raph countered with the four of clubs, three of spades, and finally a jack of clubs.

Splinter set his bags on the counter alongside Leonardo's. "Has Donatello left his room?"

"Nah." Raph smirked as Mike tossed down a two of diamonds, and Raph got to claim the pile. "He's still in there playing with his new toy." He started the next round off with an ace of spades.

"I told him about the TV, though." Mike dealt out a five of spades, and a queen of hearts.

Leonardo noticed the look of concern on Splinter's face. "Is something the matter, sensei?"

"I feel that Donatello's inquiring mind has stumbled upon something more complicated than a lost doll."

Leo smiled as he put away their gathered supplies. "Isn't that how it always is?"

Mike cheered as Raph failed to place down the correct cards, and it was Mike's turn to win. "That's kinda the pattern around here, isn't it? Small, innocent event snowballs into an overwhelmingly large, potentially life-threatening event."

"You complaining?" Raph smirked.

"Pfft, no."

They all chuckled until someone cleared their throat. Donatello was standing at the edge of the kitchen. "Hey everyone, I'd like to introduce you to Zero." He stepped aside to let everyone see the android standing behind him

Zero stepped forward. "Hello, everyone."


	3. Going Home

Zero: Chapter Three

***

Author's notes: I guess you've noticed that this chapter took a very long time to get done. I had a huge case of Writer's Block concerning this first scene, but once that was done, the rest came easy. Add in losing the Internet for two weeks and a full work schedule (which is over, whoo hoo!) I had very little time for fun stuff. Thank you for your patience.

Questions: 1. No, I haven't read Chobits, though I have heard of it in passing. I may pick it up after finishing this story. 2. The game Raph and Mike were playing in Chapter Two is called Egyptian Ratscrew. It's a fun, but complicated card game. I recommend looking up the rules. (Though I frown upon burning cards.)

Now, on to the story.

***

The room was completely silent. None of them really knew what to do next. Being introduced to an android was not an everyday occurrence. As usual, it was Mike who broke the silence. "Hi! I'm Michaelangelo, but you can call me Mike."

Zero nodded. "Hello, Mike. It is nice to meet you."

Leo and Raph exchanged glances, still a bit unsure, and a touch suspicious. However, Splinter stepped forward and bowed his head. "Welcome to our home, Zero. I am Splinter."

Zero turned her head and nodded towards Splinter. "Hello, Splinter. It is nice to meet you."

Raph let out a sharp laugh. "Is that the only thing it knows how to say?"

Zero turned her head towards Raph, who was sitting slightly behind her at the moment. Raph felt his skin crawl as her head turned almost all the way around to look at him. "No, it is not."

Leo chuckled at Raph's creeped-out expression, though he had to admit it was eerie. "I guess not. Zero." The android's head turned back and she looked at Leo. "I'm Leonardo, and that is Raphael." He pointed towards his brother.

"Hello, Leonardo. It is nice to meet you." Again, she turned her head. "Hello, Raphael. It is nice to meet you."

Don shrugged. "That's the preprogrammed greeting." He watched as Zero looked around the room. "Zero actually has very little preprogrammed into it. The Artificial Intelligence program takes in any data and constructs new programs whenever they're needed."

Leo stopped Don before he continued his technobabble. "Wait, you mean she can _learn_?"

"Yeah. At about the same rate as a human child, but much more accurately. It uses both AI hardware _and_ software to mimic how the neurons in the brains create and use pathways. It has every sense we do, plus a few more. And-"

"Donatello," Splinter interrupted. "I recognize your interest in this technology, but there are more important matters at hand. Where did she come from?"

Zero supplied the answer. "I was built by Doctor Francis Sung at the Starmine Technologies main lab in New York City, New York."

Don chuckled. "There you go. As for how she got down in the sewers," Don continued, anticipating the next set of questions. "Doctor Sung ordered her to travel from Starmine Tech. to his home. Most of the trip was supposed to be underground, to avoid being captured."

"Captured?" Mike asked.

"Yes, captured. Her orders included "do not get captured" so I assume someone was after her. Most likely for the technology, possibly a competitor."

Zero looked at Don, a slight humming being emitted from her. "Have I been captured?"

"No, no, of course not!" Don answered hurriedly. "More like rescued. When you passed near our lair, the security system interfered with some of your systems, and drained your power. We found you and brought you back here to help repair you."

Zero processed the information. "Yes. An unknown source of interference damaged my balance and guidance systems. I went into repair mode, and my power cells and reserve power ran out, and I was unable to recharge."

"Yeah, not much light down here." Don looked at Splinter. "In the morning, I'd like to take Zero to Doctor Sung's home."  
"Can't she go right now?" Raph asked. "By herself?"

Don rolled his eyes. "It's too late to go right now. And if she goes by herself, she may lose power again. Or what if whoever's after her manages to capture her? Besides, I'd like to meet the man who invented this amazing technology."

Splinter smiled at his son's enthusiasm. "Donatello, you may escort Zero to her creator's home. However, Leonardo will also accompany you, and there will be no contact with humans."

"But-"

"Good night, my sons." He turned to leave, then looked over his shoulder. "And good night, Zero."

"Good night, Splinter."

Don sighed. "Okay. Zero, come with me, we'll charge you up in my lab for the trip in the morning."

Mike bounced on the balls of his feet. "Can I come, too?"

"Splinter told _me_ to go with them, Mike," Leo said as he packed away the supply bags.

"He didn't say I _couldn't_ go."

Leo sighed as Mike put on his "puppy dog face". "All right, fine. You wanna come, too, Raph?"

"Pfft! No way, I'm sleeping in."

***

"How about this one? It goes with your eyes."

Don stepped out of the kitchen, coffee cup in hand, and was glad he wasn't drinking it at that moment. "Mike, what are you doing?"

Mike was trying to pull a large black sweatshirt over Zero's head. "I'm helping her get ready for the trip. She can't walk around naked, in case we have to go up top. Even in this town, people would notice!"

Don eyed the piled of obviously unsatisfactory clothing lying on the floor. Zero was dressed in a black sweatshirt and baggy jeans, presumably belted. Mike topped it all off with one of his old fedoras, which promptly fell down over Zero's eyes.

"And you did all this while I was making coffee?"

"Yep."

Don shook his head. "Good thing I didn't get something to eat, or you would have moved on to hair and makeup."

"Ooh, good idea!"

"No, Mike." Don walked over and lifted up the brim of Zero's hat. "You okay under there?"

Zero looked up at him with large black eyes. "Yes, Donatello."

"Good." Don tried to make the hat more stable, but no matter what, it fell down over her face. "Mike, can you get her something else? A scarf maybe? Leo, are you ready?"

"I've been ready for an hour."

Don jumped and turned around. "Don't sneak up on me like that! I coulda spilled my coffee!"

"Practice a little more, and I wouldn't be _able_ to sneak up on you like that," Leo smirked, handing Don his trenchcoat.

"Yeah, yeah." Don gulped down the rest of his coffee and pulled on his coat. "Come on, Mike, we're going!"

"One sec!" Mike hurriedly tied a blue floral scarf over Zero's head. "There." He grabbed his own coat and he and Zero followed his brothers out of the lair.

***

"Are you sure you know where you're going?"

Don was beginning to get frustrated with Mike's questions. "Yes, Mike. I cross-referenced Zero's GPS guidance system with a map. And before you ask _again_, we aren't there yet."

"So how much farther?"

Don glanced at Leo. "How come every time we go on a trip, we forget Mikey's like this until it's too late?"

Leo shrugged and kept scanning the tunnels. He was in the lead, with Don behind him, and Mike and Zero taking up the rear. Even though this was their turf, Leo was still cautious. They had reason to believe that someone would be looking for Zero, so they had to keep their eyes open.

Mike leaned over towards Zero. "Actually, I ask all these questions just to annoy them. Keep them on their toes, test their mettle, and all that," he added with a wink.

"Donatello?"

"What?" Don snapped before he realized that it was Zero who asked the question, and not Mike. "Sorry. What is it, Zero?"

"I have switched to reserve power."

Leo stopped. "What's that mean?"

"I have approximately fifteen minutes of power before I shut down."

Mike looked at Don. "I thought you fully charged her!"

Don frowned. "I thought I did. I guess a sun lamp just isn't as potent as true sunlight in this case." He did some figuring in his head. "It'll take longer than fifteen minutes to get to Doctor Sung's."

"So what do we do?" Mike asked. "Carry her when she runs out of juice?"

"No, it's best to recharge," Don explained. "There should be a safe place to surface just a block up. I'll take her up and get her charged, then we'll continue. It should only take a few minutes."

Leo nodded as they approached the ladder to the streets. "Okay, Mike and I will wait down here for you. Make sure nobody sees you."

"Will do, Leo." Don climbed the ladder and lifted the manhole cover. He helped Zero up and took her to the edge of the alley.

Zero looked up at the dawn sky. She held her hands out to absorb more light. Usually a sunrise overlooking an empty street was a lovely sight that Don enjoyed, but the dim light wasn't lovely to an android trying to suck up solar energy.

Don scanned the street. No people, and only a few parked cars. But no street in this city stayed quiet and empty for long. "Zero, how much time before your power cells are recharged?"

"At this rate, approximately forty minutes."

"Forty minutes?!" That was far too long to be out in the open like this. Don had to think fast. "Here." Don reached out and pulled Zero's scarf back off her head. "How about now?"

"Calculating. Fifteen minutes to full recharge."

__

Damn. Still too long. "Come with me." Don grabbed Zero's arm and pulled her back in the alley. He stopped under one of the fire escapes and pulled the ladder down. "Climb up to the roof. Don't let anyone see you. When you get there, take off your clothes and charge." _Okay, something about that just sounded so wrong..._

Zero grabbed the ladder rung and pulled herself up easily. When she was safe on the first platform, Don went back to the manhole. "Guys, we ran into a problem. I'm taking Zero to the rooftops to get some direct sunlight."

"Don't let anyone see you!" Leo called up.

"Yeah, like after eighteen years I need anyone to remind me."

***

Down the road, two men sat in a black car. One was scanning the street with what looked like binoculars. The other was smoking a cigarette, blowing the smoke out his open window.

The first man slowly lowered his binoculars. "We've got it."

His partner dropped his cigarette out the window and grabbed the radio while the first man started the engine.

"This is Delta team. We've spotted the target."


	4. Attack

Zero: Chapter Four

* * *

Zero was waiting for him when Don got to the rooftop. He raised his arm to block his eyes from the rising sun and spotted Zero standing near the center of the roof, her clothes sitting in a pile next to her. Don walked around the rooftop, partly to keep an eye out for danger, partly just to pass time.

He passed in front of Zero, casting a shadow over her for a second. Her eyes fluttered open to evaluate the change in environment. Seeing that it was only Donatello, she went back into charge mode.

Don stopped to study Zero for a moment. Her silvery skin had taken on a golden glow from the sunrise, and a metallic glitter that Don hadn't noticed before. It gave her a very inhuman appearance, yet...

Don continued his patrol of the rooftop. Zero was certainly an amazing piece of technology. Nanobots imitating organic cells, an AI program almost as advanced as the human brain, it boggled Donatello's mind. From what little time he'd spent with Zero, it was obvious that the program was designed to evolve to become more and more human. How human could it become? Would it eventually evolve into a sentient life form? Was it already there?

"Donatello?"

Don snapped out of his reverie to see Zero trying to get herself dressed. Trying being the operative word. Don couldn't help but smile as he walked over to help Zero get untangled from her sweater. A few quick tugs and Zero's head popped up from the cotton depths. "Thank you."

"No problem." Don tied her scarf back on. "All right, if you're ready, let's get back down to the others."

* * *

"Alpha, this is Delta team. The target and company are once again on the move. They have entered the sewer system, and seem to be continuing on to the predicted destination."

* * *

They had reached the end of the line. Leonardo turned back to the others. "Okay, we can't take these tunnels any farther. Fortunately, it's only a block or so ahead. It should still be quiet enough to get there and back without anyone noticing us."

While Leo climbed up the ladder to check the surroundings, Zero looked at Don. "I am almost home."

Don gave a weak smile. "Yeah, almost."

Mike wrapped Zero in a hug. "I'm gonna miss you, robo-girl."

"I will miss you, too, Mike."

Leo called down from the top of the ladder. "Okay, things are clear. Everybody up."

The neighborhood was quiet. All the cars were sitting along the sidewalk, or in driveways. It looked like a good place to live. But as they got closer to the house, Don started getting a bad feeling. He chalked it up to not wanting to hand Zero over to anyone, even to her own creator.

Don shook his head. _Her..._ Man, they even got him thinking like that now. But his mind drifted back to his earlier thoughts about Zero's programming. If she was programmed to learn the way a child did, did that mean she would grow up, even mature? Don was hit with a wave of depression thinking that he may never get the opportunity to find out.

When they got to the address, Don and his brothers waited on the sidewalk as Zero went up to the door. She turned to them one last time. "Thank you all for helping me."

As Zero reached the door, that feeling of uneasiness rushed over Don again. This time he saw his brothers tense as well, and he knew this was more than just his own feelings about leaving her. He heard the rustling of cloth and saw Leo sneaking around the side of the house out of the corner of his eye. Mike went around the other side. Don scanned the street.

All that had happened in the time it took Zero to take a single step up to the door. Don whirled around and called through gritted teeth. "Zero, stop!"

The android stopped just short of the door. But before she could move away, the door was flung open and she was pulled inside. Don was already running. He cleared the steps and hit the door just before it was slammed shut.

He was welcomed by a hail of gunfire, rolling behind a nearby staircase for cover. Once the bullets stopped, he checked to see where Zero was. She wasn't anywhere to be seen, but her trigger happy abductors were. They opened fire again.

"Boo-yah!"

Don heard two thuds and then silence. He looked over the stairway and saw Michaelangelo standing over the unconscious thugs. Mike smiled. "Come on, Donnie, this is no time to play Hide and Seek, we gotta find Zero."

Don rushed past his brother, giving him a quick punch to the shoulder as he passed by. "Out the back."

* * *

"We're just gonna go for a little ride."

Zero struggled against her captors. "No! I must not be captured!" It took three men to carry her towards one of the cars.

A green blur came out of nowhere and bowled into one of the men. Leonardo then turned and slammed his fist into the second man's face. The third man lost his grip on Zero and reached into his jacket.

Leo dove to the side as the man fired on him. He rolled, picking up a stone and throwing it at the man's hand in what seemed to be one motion. The man yelped in pain and dropped the gun. Leo easily knocked him out.

Don and Mike appeared at the back door. After seeing that there was no more immediate danger, Don called out, "It everyone okay?"

Leo pulled Zero with him as he jogged back to the house. "Fine, but we have to get out of sight."

The four of them stood in the dead silent house for several minutes before anyone dared say anything. It was Don. "Let's search the place. Maybe Doctor Sung's still here, or at least his information about Zero."

Leo looked out the window. It was getting too light to move without being noticed, even in disguise. A couple people were outside already, and would no doubt notice strangers coming from their neighbor's home. "Okay. Until we get some better options. Mike and I'll tie up the bad guys, Don check upstairs."

"Actually," Don replied hesitantly, "I think I'd have better luck looking for a basement. That's where I'd store the systems we're looking for."

Leo just nodded, trusting Don's knowledge and intuition when it came to technology. Don turned, asking Zero to follow him.

The basement turned out to be the fourth door he checked, next to the kitchen. It looked like it had a state of the art lock and alarm system, but it wasn't activated. That flipped an alarm in Don's head, and he proceeded with caution.

A second after the door opened, strips of light appeared along the wall, outlining the steps and guiding the way down. Don looked around in awe as the lights in the stairway and room below brightened as they walked down. "Nice..." Don commented with a whistle.

The basement itself was full of computers and other machinery. There was barely room to walk, although pathways had been made.

"Zero, do you recognize any of this?" Donatello recognized basic computer terminals, but as for the more specialized machines... he had no clue. For now.

"This is my charging pod," Zero answered. She was standing next to what looked like a vertical tanning booth.

Don watched as she stepped inside. "Makes sense that you'd be programmed to recognize that." He waited for a few seconds as the pod lit up and Zero was bathed in white light. When Don was convinced that Zero was safe, he went poking around the machinery surrounding him.

Zero emerged from the pod several minutes later, and found Don standing in front of a computer terminal, trying to gain access. "You'd think Doctor Sung would be able to afford a chair," Don grumbled.

"A chair would not fit," Zero replied in her usual metallic tone.

Don sighed, then backed away from the computer. "Your creator is good. His system is almost hack-proof. I can't get in for information without my equipment. Zero, you think you could..."

Before Don could finish his request, his brothers came crashing down the stairway. He heard a door slam above. "We've got trouble!" Mike yelled. "The 'bot nappers have backup!"

"We'll never get out through an upstairs exit. We better hope there's something down here." Leonardo started pulling machinery away from the walls.

"There's gotta be something, right?" Mike piped up. "If Zero was trying to get here from the sewers, there's gotta be a door."

"Mike, the reason we didn't come straight here underground is because the pipe system is too small." But Don still helped with the search. He could hear people upstairs, and it was only a matter of time before they got to looking down here.

"Wha- oh!" _Thud._

Don, Mike, and Zero all looked up towards the noise only to see a large hole in the wall.

Mike peered into the gap, finally looking down. "Good job, Leo!"

"Get down here!"

After Mike dropped, Don turned to Zero. "It's a good fifteen foot drop, can you make it?"

"My frame is designed to withstand a fall from-" A large crash interrupted what she was going to say. Don grabbed her wrist, pulling her into the shaft with him.

The landing wasn't as soft as Donatello had hoped, but he ignored the pain and ran. The same strips of lighting that had been along the staircase now lined the walls, showing them the direction out. Don kept a firm grip on Zero's wrist. As they ran, he realized that Doctor Sung obviously had advance knowledge that someone was after him and his creation. Why else did he need an escape tunnel? Don hoped the secret door had closed behind them.

The lights dimmed to nothing just short of a fork in the tunnel. _Great_, Don thought. _Where now_?

"Don, over here!" His brothers were calling from the tunnel on his left. When Don got to the end, he found himself standing in a familiar tunnel.

"We need to keep moving in case we're being followed," Leo told them.

"I wish we'd gotten _some_ information," Don sighed as they headed off in the general direction of home. He now had time to notice that his knee ached, and he wasn't looking forward to the backtracking they'd be doing.

"I found this. It looks like a file on Zero." Leo handed over a pale blue folder. "Actually, there were filing cabinets full, but I couldn't take everything. This was sitting out on a desk."

Don took the folder and nodded. "Thanks. I'll read it at home. Hopefully, it'll have some information that'll be useful."

"Useful for what?" Mike asked. "Our next mission?"

"Exactly. At the next logical place to find answers. Starmine Technologies."


End file.
